


We Have Each Other

by hellareyna



Category: SKAM Austin
Genre: Friendship, Gen, coming out is hard, do straight people deserve rights?, gay and lesbian solidarity, heterophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-11-09 04:22:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17994758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellareyna/pseuds/hellareyna
Summary: Tyler and Shay have a conversation at the carnival and they get vulnerable. The last clip of season one from Tyler's POV.





	We Have Each Other

“Here’s your phone,” Megan’s friend, Grace he thought, handed Tyler his phone awkwardly.

Tyler just rolled his eyes and grabbed it, “Um maybe next time you could actually charge your own phone.”

Grace glared at Megan and then mumbled, “What a bitch!” Then the two girls walked away together whispering leaving him with just Shay.

“What did I miss idiot?” Tyler asked Shay feeling much more comfortable with just the two of them. 

“Nothing. Megan was being super weird as soon as I came back with the slushie. Grace was also being kind of sketch. Like they kept whispering even though I was standing right there.” Shay spoke muffled with her straw still in her mouth as she chewed on it nervously.

Tyler saw how uncomfortable Shay was and gave her a hug. She had had a shitty week. All the shit really hit the fan with her and Megan. It really was Shay’s fault but Tyler wouldn’t guilt her for it. Love makes people do some dumbass shit. Shay had been there to help Tyler get over Marlon so now he was going to do the same for her. They both had a penchant for heterosexuals and it was a bit tragic. 

Neither of them had had anything besides those unrequited crushes. But it wasn’t like they expected one either. Everyone who said that high school is the best years of your life was straight and probably also a douche. High school for him meant awkward moments and perpetual singlehood. It wasn't too terrible though. He had Shay.

“Hey loser, you can stop hugging me now,” Shay said wiggling out of Tyler’s embrace.

“Sorry, I just got lost in thought. You’re the best you know that right? Who cares about Megan.”

“Not Marlon apparently,” Shay laughed and saw Tyler’s confused face, “They broke up finally. Didn’t you see my message?”

Tyler took his phone out of his back pocket to see the message Shay had sent, “Fuck.”

“Stop being dramatic. It sucks but at least now we won’t have to deal with their gross PDA.” Shay didn’t get it Tyler realized.

“No Shay,” Tyler tried slowing his breath so he didn’t have a full blown panic attack, “Megan’s friend was using my phone. I hadn’t opened the message so the preview was still there. She must have seen it. There’s no way she didn’t. Fuck, Shay, I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you sorry? Was she not supposed to know they broke up? Tyler stop being weird.” 

Shay was starting to look worried now and Tyler regretted how much he was freaking out. This was going to be way worse for her. He was being selfish by even thinking this was about him.

“Shay do you not remember what you texted me?” Shay shook her head causing her bangs to bounce, “Ok well don’t freak out please.” Shay nodded and chewed on her lip beginning to look more nervous as if she remembered but was trying to forget.

Tyler handed Shay his phone with the message still on the lock screen.

_ Meg and Mar broke up. This is such a mess. Why do I always have to fall for straight girls? _

“Shit,” Shay said under her breath. 

There was a moment of silence and Shay just continued drinking her slushie. Tyler didn’t know what to say. Because he just handed his phone to anyone Shay had unknowingly outed herself to the girl she had feelings for. 

“I hurt her and she probably is still so pissed at me Tyler. Tyler what if she tells everyone to get back at me. I deserve it.” Shay looked so defeated. 

Tyler handed her one of the bears he had won, “Does this help?”

Shay showed the tiniest signs of a smile, “Kinda, but you have like fifty so giving me one doesn’t mean much.” She showed off her best puppy dog eyes.

“ _ Wow _ , Fuck you, Shay. Using being possibly outed to steal my prizes,” Tyler handed her the dog he had won at the claw machine, “There, a bitch for the bitch.”

“Fuck off,” Shay said, rolling her eyes, and then handing it back to him, keeping the bear.

“I’m just telling the truth.” Tyler half-joked.

“Stop being an ass Tyler” Shay was starting to look annoyed.

“You caused a girl who thought you were her friend to consider dropping out of school. Pretty snakey material”

“She told you that?” Shay began kicking at the dirt, “Since when do you guys hang out?”

“We don’t, Shay. Everyone knew. I really didn’t think she was gonna even show here. I thought Abigail and those dance bitches still hated her.”

“They don’t.”

“How do  _ you _ know that?” Tyler hadn’t thought Shay had talked to Megan since Megan found out what happened.

Shay ignored Tyler, “I don’t think she’s even mad at me. I mean she just said she hadn’t forgiven me but that was before she saw the texts. Maybe now she’s even angrier since I let her believe I was straight. Wow this text really fucks things up”

“Shay what are you even talking about. You’re not making sense.”

Shay glanced around the crowd of people, looking for an escape. They were still standing in the middle of the carnival and it was too open. This conversation was meant for two am at a sleepover in the dark, not in the middle of a carnival that their entire school attended. Tyler and Shay could speak openly about these things when they were together. They could joke about how straight people didn’t deserve rights, but when it came down to it Tyler still told his abuela that he just didn’t have time for a girlfriend and Shay allowed her family to believe that she was dating Tyler.

“I’ll tell you later Tyler,” Shay said through gritted teeth as their geometry teacher passed by and waved at them and they very awkwardly waved back.

Shay so clearly would rather be anywhere else, but Tyler needed answers. He was still kinda confused on what was going on with his best friend.

“No Shay. What were you talking about?”

Shay glanced around and then grabbed Tyler’s wrist. She took him to the picnic benches by the outside of the carnival ground. Other kids were there not so subtly juuling and blasting bad music, it was a perfect setting not to be heard. 

They sat next to each other on the bench and Shay cleared her throat, “Um I almost came out to Megan. Twice.”

Tyler tried to contain all the conflicting emotions he was feeling, “That’s great Shay,” he gave a small smile, “why almost? Why didn’t you actually come out?”

Shay began picking at her nails not looking at Tyler, “I called her on Tuesday. Actually no, well the first time I could have come out was Saturday.”

“What happened on Saturday?”

“That’s when she confronted me remember. I kinda told her I liked her then.”

“Kinda? I thought you told her you liked Marlon.”

Shay glanced around the carnival at everyone else having fun while she relieved her world breaking. She had fucked up so much over the past few weeks and now that she was saying it all out loud she felt so emotional. Tyler was always there for her but she wished she knew someone who could give her a lecture on How to Get Over Straight Girls 101.

I told her the truth. I told her that sometimes you’ve been friends with someone for a while and then things change and you want more. I never said I liked Marlon. She just assumed and I went along. I let her believe what she wanted and now I don’t know what to do because she probably found out anyways.” Shay’s voice began to break, “Tyler why am I so fucking dumb?” 

Shay looked at Tyler desperately, tears running down her face. He was never great at comforting people. It always made him feel uncomfortable even if it was someone he knew really well. He didn’t know what to say, so he just gave her a hug as she continued to sob into his shoulder.

“You’re not dumb.” He continued to hold her.

“But I am Tyler. I’m dumb and a fucking coward. I didn’t tell her the truth tonight even when I knew I should have.”

Tyler let go of her and looked her right in the eye, “Never say that again. You are many things Shay, but you are not a coward. You are so brave. Coming out doesn’t dictate your worth.”

“Tyler,” Shay whined, “You didn’t let me finish the story of my dumbassery.”

Tyler smiled. This was his friend. Making up words and whining at him about straight girls. He hoped she remembered how brave she was but for now, he would let her whine to him.

“Ok so how do you  _ almost  _ come out to someone a second time?”

Shay smirked wiping her tears away, “So by Tuesday I had been calling and texting her nonstop for days. She wasn’t picking up or responding to my texts. Finally, she answered on Tuesday night while she was at this party she threw with Abigail. I’m surprised you didn’t hear about it. All of them posted about it all over Insta as if we actually give a fuck.”

“But you do give a fuck.” Tyler snarked.

Shay rolled her eyes and continued, ignoring Tyler, “Anyways I called and I was about to tell her the truth, trademark Shay Dixon 2018, when that same girl Grace interrupted and then Megan hung up on me.”

“Why would she do that? If she finally picked up you would think she cared enough to listen.” Tyler was getting confused by Shay’s ever more complicated story.

It was weird. She was at this huge party with Abigail and everyone and she left it to answer my call. I thought that meant she cared. She listened to me apologize for fucking up, but as soon as I told her that I wished I’d been more honest on Saturday she hung up. It’s like the universe  _ wants  _ me to be closeted.”

“Tragic. So is that how you know her and Abigail no longer have beef? Because they had a party together”

Shay nodded, “It’s so fucking ironic too. The same girl who interrupted my coming out also outed me to Megan. Love that for me.”

“You don’t know that she showed it to Megan. Maybe she didn’t even see it?”

Shay glared at Tyler like he was the dumbest person alive because maybe he was. He was lying to Shay for no reason. It wouldn’t help her. If Megan and her new crew outed them both for some sort of sick revenge him lying to Shay would have been meaningless. They had both seen how weird Grace had been with Megan. It was the type of weird that could only be attributed to discovering a secret. She was acting like the first kid to find out Santa wasn't real.

“They definitely both saw it. When I gave Meg her slushie Grace whispered something in her ear, probably like don’t worry lesbianism isn’t contagious.”

Tyler giggled, “It’s not 2005 dude I don’t think she’ll out you and she’s already a loser. What’s gonna happen? One loser will out another loser. It cancels out and nothing happens.”

It was silent for a second as they both sat with their anxieties, “I hope nothing happens but we really don’t know. It’s not like people hating gays is some ancient thing. It’s weird not knowing what could happen.”

“We don’t. But we can’t die over worry from something that hasn’t happened and probably won’t. Besides, it’s summer. Gossip moves so slow over the summer. It took like a month for people to realize Grace Stone got a nose job last summer.”

“Oh shit I forgot about that,” Tyler smiled only to realize she got the wrong message out of what he had said, “It wasn’t even a good nose job. Like it looked worse after. She needs a refund I think if they have those for plastic surgery.”

Tyler laughed. He took a deep breath and just relaxed and joked with Shay. Nothing to stress over for just one moment he prayed. No more straight girls or shit parents or some other bullshit that high school could stir up for him. He knew that people said high school sucks for everyone but he was only halfway through and he could definitely say it sucked the most for him and Shay.

Not only did they have to deal with how suckish high school was for gays but also they kept getting dragged into Marlon’s whirlwind of drama. He’d been friends with the guy since they were in the same class in third grade but he could be more trouble than he was worth. Shay though, she was worth all the drama she brought along with her.

“Dude do you have a ride? I don’t want to take the bus again.”

Tyler smiled and put his arm around Shay, “Of course. I’ll just text my mom that she needs to drop you off too.”

“Thanks, it’s just my mom is really busy right now and I don’t want to bother her but I knew you probably had a ride. I don’t want to be a bother or anything.”

Tyler ignored Shay’s lying, “It’s fine. You live on the way anyways.”

“You’re the best Tyler. Even when I keep fucking up you stay by me. I don’t know how you still stand me.”

“I’m a saint,” Tyler said holding his hands up like the paintings from church and Shay  _ promptly _ punched him in the arm.

They sat in silence again. Tyler scrolling through Instagram and rolling his eyes at the fake smiles while Shay finished her slushie. He liked that they could just be without any talking needed.

Then Shay broke the silence, “I’m glad I didn’t come out to Megan. I think it would have left me with the same anxiety as her seeing my text. It just feels weird after all this time. She knows something that before now only you and I have known about. It just feels like it was always going to be a secret. I never ever thought she would like me back. I thought it would hurt less if she wasn’t with Marlon. I still wanted them to both be happy.”

Tyler nodded. He stayed silent afraid of disturbing whatever breakthrough Shay was having. Tonight was an anomaly in their friendship. They rarely got this  _ deep  _ together. 

“At least now it’s not my responsibility. Like the fact that she knows was an accident means she won’t bring it up to me. God that would be so awkward.”

“Being vulnerable is bullshit,” Tyler said, he hated the idea of anyone knowing his real self, that was just for him.

“No, it’s not even that it’s just now it’s her information. I didn’t give it to her she just found it. I don’t know why I worried. She’s not evil she won’t use information like that against me.”

“How do you know?” Tyler saw how quickly Shay was changing her mind and worried if she was just continuing to lie to herself.

“Straight people are dumb. I could literally tell someone I want Tessa Thompson to raw me and they’d be like what does that mean. She probably understands what that text means, she’s not as dumb as you think, but she is probably more confused about it than vengeful about how I treated her.”

“Yeah,” Tyler felt he understood, “It’s like she had this whole idea of you and she believed you were into her boyfriend. Her world is falling apart more than yours.”

“Exactly. It’s fine, weird, but fine. She’s just confused, not a bitch.”

“So are you all good?”

“I think so.” Shay sounded surer of herself than she had all night. 

She didn’t seem scared anymore. Tyler knew that the next few months of summer would go by fast and he was glad he would get to spend them with Shay.

“We are going to be okay,” Shay nodded and hugged Tyler, he held her for a second longer than he needed to because they both needed it.

“Thanks for being here. I wouldn’t have known what she saw without you, but I wouldn’t have gotten through this without you either.”

Tyler didn’t know what to say. He was never the best with comforting people or saying the right thing. This was already so awkward.

“What are gay friends for besides being mean to girls who don’t like their friends back and then comforting then.”

Shay laughed, “Oh my god. True gay solidarity is being mean to straight people.”

They both smiled. They were going to be okay.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I was inspired to write this when I saw a gifset of Megan finding out. I realized that when Tyler got his phone back he would probably realize that Megan and Grace had seen this. This was basically my interpretation of how that would then go down. I think Tyler (probably) also being gay adds a totally new element to Skam Austin that OG didn't have and I'm really excited to see that in season two. Less than two more weeks until it airs!!! I also almost added more to this work but I might add it as like a super short sequel idk.


End file.
